


Newspaper Girl

by yanderekirklandchan



Series: I Want To Break Free [2]
Category: Bohemian Rhapsody (Movie 2018)
Genre: Broken marriage, Crossdressing, F/M, Gender Dysphoria, M/M, Other, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-11
Updated: 2018-11-14
Packaged: 2019-08-22 08:22:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16594307
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yanderekirklandchan/pseuds/yanderekirklandchan
Summary: Roger thought it'd just be a normal, relaxed evening. But then when was anything ever normal or relaxed with Freddie? Somehow his night went from dresses to dinner, then the paparazzi got involved.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Second part of the series! Thanks so much for all the support for this series, it surprised me and really means a lot.

Roger sat sprawled across the sofa, resigned to a lazy night in. Brian and John's families were having dinner together so they were away. He didn't feel left out. No, not at all. He knew how the evening would go if he and his wife were invited too; shouting, drinking, throwing things, storming out. So basically, it was in everyone's best interest to not invite them. He didn't blame John and Brian for it.

He sighed and screwed his eyes shut, folding over himself, his head in his hands. Why had he ever thought it a good idea to fall in love? He'd known from his own childhood that marriage was a lie. Love wasn't a fantasy, no, it was very real and very deadly. Like a disease, you could try your best to avoid it but when it befell you there was nothing you could do. He'd vowed as a child that he wouldn't fall to it. He'd done well for a while, never get close never stay, but his will had run out. Was it fair that he should be lonely? Well, he'd been far less lonely then than he was now.

Roger shook his head. What was the old saying? Keep calm and bloody carry on.

"Fucking hell!" He cried out, falling off the sofa in shock as his window swung open. Really, he didn't know why he was even surprised anymore when Freddie climbed through.  
"Organise a meeting with you and I'm lucky to see a glimpse of your bloody shoelace, sit here minding my own business and you keep falling out of the sky." Roger huffed, walking over to help him climb in.

Freddie grinned up at him "Is that your way of saying that I'm like an angel, darling?"  
Roger shook his head "Are you fucking high again, Fred?"  
"Not anymore, I swear. And, now, is that any way to greet a friend? Especially when I came all this way to say hello." Freddie said, unfazed. Well, he didn't look high, at least. Just his usual brand of madness.  
Roger rolled his eyes "Oh, I'm sorry for being so rude. Hi, Freddie. How are you? What the fuck are you doing in my bloody window?"

Freddie didn't appear offended, only fondly amused "I am very well, thank you. And I'm here because an old designer friend of mine was finished with a project so she called me to see if I was interested in taking anything before she threw them out." He explained, going to make himself at home on Roger's sofa "Well, she had this most gorgeous dress, absolutely beautiful. Now, I don't regularly wear dresses, I find them a bit restricting personally, but this one was too beautiful to just let be thrown out. Unfortunately the build of the thing was much to lean for me but I thought it'd be such a shame to throw it away. So I figured I'd come here and see if you had any interest in it since it seemed more your size."

Roger blinked, taking a moment to process the information overload. After he did, however, he felt his heart start pounding as a wave of something unpleasant started to crash through him. Not quite panic. Anxiety, perhaps?  
"Why would I be interested?" He heard himself say, through a numb veil. He jumped when a warm hand closed around his own, squeezing it in a pleasant sort of way. He looked up and saw concern and care in Freddie's eyes. His words, however, were light hearted and flippant.

"Oh, no reason, Rog. As you might have noticed, I don't exactly have the most extensive friend list. Brian and John's frames even more ill fitted to the dress than I am. Mary... Well, I-I don't think she's speaking to me right now. That left you. Besides, I think it'll go stunningly with your hair and eyes."  
Roger's eyes flitted guiltily down. Yeah, he had to remember that he wasn't the only person in the world who was going through relationship problems.

He frowned "Are you saying I'm unmuscular?" He accused playfully, feeling much less like his chest was going to cave in now.  
Freddie chuckled "Not at all, darling. I'm sure I'd be able to grate cheese on that chest if you let me try." Roger huffed a laugh.  
"But what if I don't want to wear the dress?"  
Freddie shrugged "Then you don't have to. It's just clothes."

Roger nodded, biting his lip "And if I do want to?"  
"Well then, I'll hand this over to you." Freddie said, pulling out a paper wrapped package from a bag. "You may need me to help with the back. It's a ribbon lace-up."  
Roger simply nodded, reaching out and taking the package. His heart beat fast again but not unpleasantly this time. He felt as if he was holding something very special in his hands.  
"I'll be back in a moment." Roger said, standing to go to the bathroom.  
"Take your time, love, and shout if you need anything."

Roger walked into the bathroom, sitting on the closed toilet lid as he started to undo the wrapping. He tried not to look at the dress too much, it was silly but he kind of wanted it to be a surprise. Of course, he couldn't get dressed with his eyes closed so he had to see a few things. The colour, for a start. It was sparkly. Of course it was, Roger thought, shaking his head with a smile.

He saw glimpses of white, silver and blue but it remained mostly a surprise as he shimmied it over his head. He took a moment to appreciate the soft material on the inside and the way the whole thing hugged to his body. Freddie had been right in his assessment, it did fit him well, almost perfectly. The only real misfit was the stiff cups at the breast of the dress that were obviously not made for him. Even then the stiffness of it meant that it gave the impression of him having breasts rather than the bits of fabric loosely hanging down. Freddie was right again, he couldn't for the life of him reach the lace-up back let alone figure out how to close it.

He walked out, decent enough to be seen. Well, decent enough to be seen by Freddie. There were many people in the world who'd rather their children saw him naked than dressed like he was now. The thought made him sad and a little ashamed. Of partaking in something that'd have him shunned from society should anyone find out or of being a member of a species that would so violently judge someone for their personal life he didn't know. He did know, however, that he could trust Freddie seeing him like this and for a moment he could pretend that everything was alright.

He walked out of the bathroom with a small smile and a blush that he just couldn't fight off. He grabbed the scarf Freddie gave him as an afterthought, wrapping it a round his neck. It would suit the dress judging from the sparkles. "Hey, uh... Freddie, could you help me with the back?"  
Freddie, who'd been sitting on the sofa reading some magazine, looked up at his voice. The look that he gave him made Roger feel weirdly flustered.  
He stood up "Of course. Here, turn around."  
Roger did so, holding his hair up in case it got in the way. As Freddie busied himself with the ribbon, his breaths fell against Roger's back, making him shiver.  
"You wore the scarf!" Freddie commented, Roger could hear the smile in his voice "It does look amazing on you, darling."

"There you are." He said, standing back and looking him admiringly up and down "Come, you must have a full mirror somewhere here."  
Roger nodded, guiding him to his bedroom. The cupboard there had a full length mirror on the door.

When Roger caught sight of himself in the mirror he let out a breath of shock. The dress was beautiful, it looked like something a rich lady from the twenties might wear to a ball. It was tight and fitting until around the knees it splayed out in poofed layers of white and blue. The rest of the dress was white with silver sequins embroidered in swirling patterns.

The sleeves of the dress were loose and just long enough to cover his shoulders, making his arms look far more lean than they were. The dress was very shapely, accentuating his figure and creating it's own curves too. Over all, he didn't just look like a man in a dress, he looked like a girl. It felt... weird. His reflection was familiar but completely foreign. He couldn't deny he liked it. It felt... right?

"Gorgeous, darling! Absolutely stunning, don't you think?" Freddie said, his reflection smiling at Roger in the mirror.  
Roger smiled back "Yeah."  
"Almost a shame to just take it off. A sight like that is a deprivation for the world not to see."  
Roger frowned and turned to Freddie "What do you mean?"

For the first time that evening, it was Freddie's turn to look uncertain "I just thought that perhaps we could do something. We're all alone, after all. Just because Brian and John aren't here doesn't mean we have to be bored. We could have dinner, maybe. Isn't that what you're supposed to do with a pretty girl? Take them to dinner?"

Pretty girl? Really, Roger should probably feel offended but the words gave him a thrill. Maybe that was what made him give his ludicrous answer.  
"Yes. Alright. As long as no one finds out about this!"  
Freddie nodded "Of course, we can go somewhere private so no one will see you. I'll make sure no one will recognise you even if they did."

Roger tried to expel the anxiety growing within him that this was a very bad idea. This was nothing important, after all. Just he and Freddie hanging out together and getting something to eat like they'd done loads of times before. Except this time he was wearing a dress.


	2. Chapter 2

Roger sat on a stool, heart pounding in anticipation and nervousness at what he was about to do. What was he thinking? There was no way this could end well.  
"Freddie, no one can notice me." He said in a serious voice, the very thought making an unpleasant chill pass over him. If people found out about this, he would genuinely consider jumping of the roof. Life wouldn't be worth living anymore, it'd be too horrible with the press picking the flesh from his bones.

What would his wife and kids think? Brian? John? Well those two would definitely accept him, they were too nice not to. They were supportive of the drag video idea, right? But this was different to a little messing around. This didn't even feel like it qualified as drag. What the hell was wrong with him? There must be something. Slip up in front of journalists and he could find out what was wrong with him just by reading the headlines. He wouldn't even need to commit suicide if his dad found out, he'd kill him dead. He was already disappointed enough by his pursuit of 'girly' music as a career and definitely didn't like long, well looked after hair.

"Roger? Darling, breath. No one will know it's you, I promise you." Freddie assured in a calm, grounding tone, holding his hands gently, putting the makeup he'd been holding down, "It's just the way people's brains work. No one will ever expect to see the famous Roger Taylor in a dress so they won't. They'll just see a pretty young lady who maybe has similar cheekbones to you, or a familiar nose they just can't place. Something like that. Besides, I'll make sure you won't even look like you." He said, brandishing his makeup tools again.

Roger smiled, encouraged by Freddie's words. It was true, he just hoped that it'd play out that way for him. Still, he felt much calmer, sitting back and letting Freddie do whatever it was he was doing with that tube and pointy brush.  
Freddie sighed, long sufferingly, "This feels a damn shame. Like painting a stick man over the Mona Lisa. Why would anyone cover up something so beautiful?"  
Roger didn't know what to say to that, blushing brightly. He hoped it was hidden by the chalky liquid Freddie had rubbed over his cheeks.

As Freddie worked away, Roger admired his skill. He worked with a sense of expertise and precision, a true artist no one could deny. It was easy to forget that Freddie had a design background, of was sometimes difficult to picture him anywhere other than behind a piano or in front of a microphone.

He admired the look of utter concentration in Freddie's eyes, the one that made him look like he was seeing a whole new beautiful world and onlookers would just have to patiently wait for his vision to unfold. It was a gorgeous look, in Roger's opinion, Freddie's face would light up so very brightly in enthusiasm. At the proximity they were at, it was impossible to miss the expression. It was the one Freddie got when he was working tirelessly over his music. It was so very strange to have the look focused on him.

"Done." He said, standing back with a look of satisfaction on his face.  
Roger swivelled around on the stool to see what had been made of him. For Freddie's makeup work, Roger could only say wow. It wasn't makeup, it was wearable art. Probably most noticeable was the eye makeup, Freddie had used whites, silvers and blues to match the dress, colours cascading like stars and snow from his eyelid to the top of his cheekbone. How he'd managed it, Roger would never know.

His face had been given a softer look, all manor of products used to make him flawless porcelain, his cheeks tinted with a delicate blush. His cheeks and jaw had been contoured well enough to change his face shape ever so slightly, of made all the difference in trying to hide his identity. His eyelashes had somehow been given a natural lustrous wet look, which was some feat as Roger, being able to compare it with his normal eyes, knew there must be a very heavy amount of makeup. His lips were a glossy pink-red had been somehow blended to give them a soft, pouting look.

His hair had been swept up in a messy yet highly stylised bun, a few strands falling to frame his face. Freddie must have added some sort of support under it to make the bun larger, Roger definitely didn't have that much hair. As Roger sat speechless, Freddie darted over to his bag, pulling out a small crystal tiara, sliding it into his hair.  
"You are a Queen, after all." Freddie said, by way of explanation, "So, what do you think?"  
"Freddie... This is beautiful! It's... Wow. You're so talented. And you know just how much I mean that as I risked inflating your overly large head over saying it." He teased fondly. Really, he was a bit overwhelmed at how he looked. It was weird to see the foreign figure in the mirror move in time with him.

"You flatter me, darling! Now, let's get going, shall we? It'll be dawn if we keep going at this rate."  
Roger nodded and stood, surprised he had no trouble walking around it the dress. He'd have thought that he'd trip and fall at least once but it was surprisingly easy. He silently gave his compliments to the designer.

Walking over to put his shoes on, Roger frowned. Somehow his faithful white trainers didn't seem quite appropriate. Freddie, noticing what he was looking at, went back to his faithful bag.  
"Here, try these." He said, handing Roger a pair of bejewelled silver heals. Roger took them apprehensively. They weren't the stilettos that he'd seem many women wear but they were still far further from the ground than anything he was used to.

"Thanks." He said, running his fingers over the material as he contemplated whether to wear them. Well, they were very pretty so... He pulled the shoes on, leaning against the wall for support, doing up the small buckles at the ankle was a very tricky business. Freddie, who'd watched his struggles in amusement for a few minutes, walked over and helped him.

The pair finally walked out the door, Freddie gently supporting Roger at the waist as he learnt how to navigate his new shoes. They took the car Freddie had taken him. Fred's idea, less links to Roger that way. In the passenger seat of the luxurious car, Roger wronged his fingers in anxiety yet he couldn't deny the excitement within him.  
******  
"Freddie, this place looks fancy as fuck. How much does it cost?" Roger said, staring wide eyed at the restaurant that looked more like a penthouse.  
Freddie shook his head dismissively "Don't worry about that. Tonight is on me, for the pleasure of your company, my dear."  
Roger opened his mouth to protest but Freddie cut him off with a raised hand, walking over to the entrance to be done with the matter. Roger shook his head incredulously and followed.

"We can pretend we are on a date." Freddie said gleefully "Oh, what a scene we'll make!"  
Roger chuckled "Well, it's what people would assume looking at us, so I suppose."  
Freddie grinned, making a show of wrapping an arm around Roger's waist, leading him by the hand to the entrance. Roger was surprisingly fond of the sensation so didn't complain.

"Hello, my lovely lady companion and I would like a table. Your finest, please, away from everyone else, if you'd be so kind." Freddie drawled.  
The man looked mildly taken aback but nodded, apparently assessing from their clothing that they had enough money to pay for such requests.  
"Of course sir, madam, follow me." He said, leading them off into the building. Roger blushed: madam? It really worked, he really looked like a woman. A pretty one too, judging from the looks he got from other guests. Satisfaction fluttered in Roger's stomach and he bit back a contagious smile.

The place really was very expensive looking. At least that meant that he wasn't overdressed. The finest table in this place definitely didn't disappoint. They were lead into a area that was semidetached from the other dinners, seated by a large glass window, facing out towards the clear night sky and a stunning lake. The room was moodily lit by candles and a blazing little fire next to the table. Walking closer to the fire, it was very cozy. They were handed menus and left to decide.

"Freddie... What the hell? This is so beautiful, what... Why?"  
Freddie shrugged, the glint in his eyes betraying how Roger's reaction pleased him "When have I ever done things half way, darling?"  
Roger chuckled at that, though he was still very overwhelmed, "Well, that's a point."

He looked over the menu, taking in all the expensive drinks and dishes. Sure, he was rich enough to go to places like this every night but it'd never really been his gig. Sometimes their life now just felt so surreal, like he'd just wake up at any moment. He hummed in thought, staring at the menu, not knowing in the foggiest what to get. Steak? You could never go wrong with steak. Bloody hell, ostrich steak? Poor bird. In the end he settled on something that basically sounded like fancy bangers and mash.

When the waiter came, Freddie ordered the most expensive champagne. Of course he did. Roger smiled, chuckling softly to himself.  
"What is it?" Freddie asked, cocking his head to the side curiously.  
Roger shook his head "Just... You're a wonderfully ridiculous man, Freddie. I feel as if from the moment I met you I've been carried away in your dream where anything is possible."  
"Anything is possible, darling. There's just very few people who believe in what they want enough to never give up, it's like a form of natural selection."

Roger huffed a laugh "I still can't believe I've actually done this." He said, gesturing down to his dress. It really was ridiculous, when he thought about it.  
Freddie looked over him once again "Well, I can vouch for how gorgeous you look. Are you comfortable? Are you enjoying yourself?"  
"Comfortable... Mostly. Just a bit nervous, y'know? Enjoying myself... Yes." He admitted.

He frowned, suddenly feeling self-conscious "Is that wrong of me, Freddie? To be enjoying this?"  
Freddie frowned, shaking his head firmly "Of course it's not, Rog. Don't let anyone ever make you think otherwise."  
Roger nodded, not entirely convinced but confident enough for the time being.

"Ah, look. That must be our food." Freddie pointed out.  
Roger turned to look and with that the topic was forgotten.  
*******  
"Freddie, those people over there are staring at us. They just arrived." Roger said, dread pooling in his stomach.  
Freddie frowned, turning to follow Roger's gaze and cursed under his breath. "Shit, the paparazzi."  
Roger's body shifted to panic mode, his head feeling an icy numb "W-what do we do?" He asked, voice trembling.  
Freddie looked over to Roger, frowning in concern "We'll leave. It's our right to. We're done, anyway. Don't worry, darling, you don't look recognisable. No need to panic other than the usual paparazzi hassle. Alright?" He said kindly, softly looking at Roger with big worried eyes. Roger swallowed back a lump in his throat and nodded.  
"Let's go then, my dear." Freddie said, standing.

The pair made a hasty retreat. It was at the point where the paparazzi were still trying to stay hidden, unsure whether they'd been seen. They had to leave before that changed or this'd be a lot harder to escape. Roger stood, trying not to have an anxiety attack while Freddie paid. He'd never felt better climbing into a car than he did then. Weirdly exhausted, Roger let his head fall to the side, resting it on the cool glass of the car window. That'd been a little bit of a scare, yes, but he'd had fun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tada! Another chapter. I'd just like to say thanks soooo much to everyone who's reading, commenting and just generally supporting this story. Your feedback really means so much to me so thank you very much. Yeah, this particular work in my series is going to be one chapter longer than I anticipated so keep an eye out!


	3. Chapter 3

"My feet hurt." Roger whined, shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot. Honestly, he'd never had more respect for women than now. To willing put these pain machines on? They must be bloody mental! But... The shoes were really pretty. Freddie looked at Roger from where he was walking besides him.  
"It's alright, darling, only a few more metres till the door. I have the highest faith that you will make it." He said, bemused.  
Roger huffed "That much? I can't take any more of this!" He declared dramatically, more to enjoy complaining than anything else.

He should have realised when Freddie didn't immediately respond that something was wrong. Suddenly, Roger found himself lifted straight off the ground by two muscular arms. He let out a rather undignified yelp, gripping onto Freddie for dear life.  
"Freddie, what the hell are you doing?" He exclaimed, voice high with surprise. Freddie, the bastard, acted as if this was totally normal.  
"Hm? I'm carrying you back home, dearest. To save your pretty little feet." He said calmly, as if he hadn't just made Roger's heart jump out of his mouth. Roger grumbled but leant closer to the other man. For warmth, of course, it was a cold night.

How Freddie managed to unlock the door while carrying him, he did not know. How he managed to carry him at all was a mystery to Roger too. He supposed, Freddie must be far stronger and more muscular than he gave him credit for. Freddie didn't place him down when they got through the door, no, he carried him all the way up the stairs, putting him down finally on the sofa. Roger was sure his blush was certainly bright enough to be seen even through the heavy layers of makeup.

"...Hey." He said dumbly, unable to form coherent thoughts, let alone words, for the life of him.  
Freddie, seeming to find this amusing, smiled "Hey." He responded in like, dropping to his knees and undoing the buckles of the shoes, pulling the offending garments off his feet and strewing them to the side. He ran his thumbs over the sole of his feet.  
"There, all better." He said, getting up from the floor and sitting beside Roger, the sofa dipping softly under his weight.

Roger smiled serenely, feeling tired but in a pleasant way.  
"I had a great time this evening." He said, feeling the need to say it "Thank you, Freddie."  
Freddie smiled that stupid amazing smile that Roger loved "You're welcome, darling. And thank you to you, too. As always, your company is sublime."

"Tell your friend who made the dress she's a brilliant designer."  
"I shall. Which reminds me, you'll probably be needing my help to get you out of the thing."  
Roger felt a pang of something unidentifiable and unpleasant at that. But that was stupid, he had to get out of the dress. Not only would sleeping in it ruin it but he'd probably wake up with full body pins and needles.  
"Yeah, alright. And can you help me get this stuff off too?" He said, gesturing to his face "As much as I love it, I don't think my Pillow's equipped to handle it."

"Of course, darling, I'll start with that so the makeup doesn't get on any of your clothes." Freddie said, disappearing for a moment and returning with what appeared to be a damp cloth. He started to gently dab the makeup away. Somehow this felt more intimate than when Freddie had put the makeup on him in the first place, or maybe it was just Roger's tired mind playing tricks on him.

Once done, Freddie turned him around and started to unlace the back of the dress, which loosened and started to slip, the waist line stopping at his hips. Roger quickly went to his bedroom to grab a T-shirt and shorts for pyjamas, pulling them on. When he walked back, Freddie was packing up his bag. Roger frowned at the sight, a surprising pang of sadness inside him.

When he noticed his presence, Freddie looked up, smiling.  
"I wouldn't want to be in your way any longer." He said by way of explanation.  
Roger nodded, a weird coldness setting over him along with resignation "Do you want the dress back?"  
Freddie shook his head "It's yours now, if you want it. But I can keep it for you if that'd be more convenient."

Roger nodded, trying to push down the stupid feeling of rising anxiety inside of him. He watched Freddie pack, the feeling growing worse and worse. When he walked past on the way to the door, Roger couldn't stop himself from grabbing his wrist.  
"Wait!" He exclaimed. Freddie looked at him questioningly, a surprised look on his face. Roger blushed, shifting awkwardly.

"I-I... You don't have to go. Feel free to stay."  
Freddie's eyes softened "That's alright, darling, I think I've barged in enough."  
Roger frowned, biting his lip "What I mean to say is... I want you to stay. Please?" Freddie frowned in concern but nodded, walking back away from the door.

"Of course, my dear. But what about Dominique and the kids? I get the impression that they're not overly fond of me."  
Roger felt as if someone had scratched an open wounds. He swallowed thickly "She's out. They're all out for the night. Away with friends or something." He said, looking down, unable to meet the concerned gaze he was inevitably getting.  
After a moment of silence, Freddie spoke "All right. Of course, I'd love to stay."  
Roger looked up, smiling softly. What did he do to get such amazing friends?  
*******  
Freddie woke up groaning softly to himself. His body ached in the way that meant he'd fallen asleep in a place that wasn't intended for that particular use, probably a sofa from the feel of it. He looked around blearily to figure out where on earth he was. It was then that he realised that there was a warm something—someone—pressed up against his side. He swiveled slowly to take a look and saw long golden hair splayed across his shoulder. He frowned, that was odd... Oh. Roger.

Like that, he remembered the events of last night. Feeling lonely, going to Roger's house, dinner, watching TV and chatting until they fell asleep. He smiled sleepily, it'd been fun. Like the good old days when all the lot of them had had in the world was each other; no wives, no children, no press or interviews or deadlines. He had everything he'd ever wanted now but he'd be lying if he said he didn't miss the little things.

If he'd had it his way, Freddie would have closed his eyes and fallen straight back to sleep. But the phone ringing, which was far too loud for this time of morning in his opinion, wouldn't let him. At the sudden loud noise, Roger stirred beside him, making a soft groaning noise and frowning, though remaining asleep. Freddie smiled softly, his friend didn't look half cute; and not just the one meaning of the word.

He sighed, he should probably go and answer the phone, if only to shut it up. Surely no one would call Roger's number to talk to him so there was really nothing he could do but pass on a message or hang up. Rolling off the sofa slowly, so as not to wake Roger, Freddie climbed of the sofa, quietly jogging over to the phone.

"Hello?" He answered in a hushed tone, looking over his shoulder to make sire he hadn't woken Roger. The voice he heard on the other side of the line surprised him considerably.  
"Freddie!"  
"Mary?" Freddie asked, confused. Why'd Mary be calling Roger? She sounded mad too.  
"Freddie, do you realise how long I've been trying to contact you?" Freddie winced, okay. Not mad at Roger. She had that painful voice that was somewhere between being really mad and tearful.

"I called you, I called Brian, I called John. I figured you must be here! Freddie, how could you?"  
Freddie sighed, she had started crying, he could tell from her voice.  
"My love, whatever is the matter? I'm afraid I don't understand." He said honestly.  
"What's the matter? Don't understand? You know what you've done! Everyone who reads the bloody papers knows what you've done! I... How could you? I thought you were... But then you went and... Was the problem me all along?"  
Freddie was taken aback by all that "Mary, I swear I have no idea what I've done. You thought I was what? But then I did what? My dear, I assure you that whatever this is, you're not the problem."

"You're right. I'm not. This one's on you." She said coldly. Freddie frowned, Mary was never cold.  
"Please, if you'll give me a moment to go get today's paper then I'll know what you're talking about." He said, heart beating with borderline panic, his mind racing trying to figure out what he'd done that was as bad as this.  
"Do what you must, when have I ever been able to control you?" Freddie's concern deepened but he decided to go find out what this was about before responding.

He ran down the stairs, scrabbling through the pile of paper at the doormat. He grabbing the paper, he rushed back to the phone before reading it. As he read it his eyes widened with shock then amusement and he couldn't help but burst into laughter. On the front page was a very large picture of him and Roger from last night, laughing happily and looking rather stunning, especially Roger. The title read 'Mercury, love affair?', the rest of the article was equally as ridiculous. The press had dubbed Roger 'the mysterious newspaper girl'. It went on to describe this mystery girl as a 'stunning model type', he'd have to show Roger later.

"What's so funny?" Mary's voice carried from the phone. Freddie grimaced, she sounded even more upset now.  
"Darling, I swear it's not what it looks like." He said earnestly.  
"I thought you were gay, Freddie, that's why I let you date other people and myself date other people. Because that wouldn't be fair on either of us! I thought... I didn't... I didn't just let you go so you can use your fame and fortune to upgrade me to a prettier, newer model!" He had to pull the phone away because her voice rose to a furious shout. Her word's hurt a little but they were totally justified given the apparent circumstances.

"Mary... Mary, please just listen I... Mary I swear..." He kept trying to explain but she wouldn't let him get a word in.  
"What?" She snapped finally "What can you possibly say to make this all better, Freddie? Oh, please go right ahead, I'd love to hear it." Freddie felt a mixture of amusement at the ridiculousness of the situation and guilt at making Mary suffer like this.  
"It wasn't a girl, Mary. And it wasn't a date!"  
There was silence on the other side of the line before Mary spoke slowly, evaluatively "It wasn't a girl?" He asked, slightly disbelievingly but sounding far less upset.

"Well... Perhaps. Maybe, I haven't asked. But at any cost it wasn't a date."  
He could feel Mary's confusion through the phone "What do you mean you haven't asked? Asked if they're a girl or not? Freddie, what-"  
"His sex is male. Okay? And yes, I'm still one hundred and sixty nine percent gay. And it wasn't a date!"  
Mary, back to her usual self again, to Freddie's relief, said "Freddie... You know I don't mind you dating men! You don't have to deny it."  
Freddie shook his head, though he knew she couldn't see it "It wasn't a date!"  
"Suuure." She drawled, her grin tangible in her voice.  
*******  
"How've you two been holding up without us? Alright?" John asked, sitting down at the table. The four of them had decided to come together for dinner since they'd been mostly away from each other the day before.  
Brian grinned knowingly "Oh, I'd say Freddie's been more than alright if the papers are anything to go by."  
John chuckled "Yeah, I saw that too."

Roger blushed brightly, he too had seen it. Thankfully, as Freddie had predicted, not a single person suspected that the 'newspaper girl' was him. Freddie's words in response to the pair had Roger light headed.  
"Oh yes, I've been fabulous. The most gorgeous little thing you can find, don't you agree?" He said, never breaking eye contact with Roger, a mischievous look in his eyes.  
"Yeah, pretty young lady, Fred. Will we get to meet her?" Brian asked. Roger was sure he'd pass out any second from this.  
Freddie shrugged with a knowing look "We'll see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tada! Finally I've finished it, I'm sorry I took so long, darlings. This is the final one of this particular story but I'll continue the series and I am also planning on writing some bohemian rhapsody stories not in this particular series too so keep an eye out. Thank you again for all the support, it means the world to me! Really, you're the greatest :3 Until next time :)
> 
> Also, if anyone is interested in roleplaying tell me in the comments


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